Ms. Meg tells about a surprise visit!

On Friday, Ms. Meg, one of our Speech Therapists, submitted this story about a surprise learning experience:

"The blaring sound of the fire alarm pierced the air, so we gathered up the kiddos and hurried outside to the back of the playground. It happens sometimes – one of the kids reaches up and pulls the alarm, setting off an impromptu fire drill. It’s not easy to keep the children seated and calm on any day, but it was a particularly hot mid-day, and we had to wait longer than usual since it wasn’t immediately clear who or what had set off the alarm.

The fire truck arrived and gave the “all clear.” But Melissa, never one to pass on a learning opportunity, persuaded the firemen to stay and let the children see the truck.

What a great reward for sitting so patiently! The kids were very excited to climb inside the fire truck, try on the hats, and see the equipment. Those who were a bit too scared to climb in still touched the truck, examined the huge wheels and waved to the firemen. The firemen left us with stickers and coloring books, along with promises to return again. It was an exciting way to finish off a Friday language session!"

       

Audiology Patient Gives Back

We had a very successful 50th Anniversary celebration last week, thanks to the participation of many individuals and community organizations! One such individual is a client of Dr. Menge's, who was so grateful for BRSHF's services in the area of reduced-cost hearing aids, that he wanted to donate some of his time back to the clinic. This is his story, as told by Natalee:

"One of my patients came in a few weeks ago for a hearing aid follow-up appointment and mentioned that he had seen a sign in the clinic about people volunteering.  He asked, 'What do your volunteers do?'  I mentioned that we have a group of LSU student  workers who help out in the group therapy classrooms or filing charts - both of which I figured he would not be interested in, being a middle-aged man.  He asked about helping with yard work and if I thought it would be a good idea.  I told him that we don't usually turn down free labor and that I would talk with our director, Melissa Juneau, about him coming to help out with the front flowerbeds.  Thanks to this gentleman's hard work, our front hedges and lawn have been trimmed and tidied up just in time for the 50th Anniversary! While that was certainly not necessary of him, it's nice to know we touch people's lives in a way that moves them to such kind action." 

Introducing Irina!

Last week, we sadly bid farewell to Mrs. Trenae' Webb, a Speech Therapist who is near and dear to many hearts here at BRSHF. Though Trenae can never be replaced, we're excited to announce the arrival of a new speech therapist, Irina Kochergin, who'll be taking over Trenae's spot. Here is a little introduction to BRSHF's newest addition:

"Hello, I’m Irina and I’ll have the pleasure of working with the amazing toddlers and preschoolers at BRSHF this fall! I am thrilled and excited to begin the adventures of learning with these little ones. I am a graduate of LSU's Masters program in Speech Pathology, and although I am newly aboard to the staff here, I am not a stranger to the Foundation. I worked here two years ago alongside the wonderful therapists and have gained a wealth of experience in this program. I love working with children and love the many opportunities I have in their learning development in my field of speech pathology. I look forward to becoming well-acquainted with everyone here!"

Two fun facts about Irina are that she was born in Russia, and she has worked at Disney World! Welcome aboard, Irina!

Birthdays All-Around!

This week, as we're gearing up for BRSHF's 50th Anniversary celebration, we had a staff birthday of our own to celebrate! Trenae' Webb, Speech Pathologist Extraordinaire, gives this update:

"At BRSHF we celebrate the little things, we celebrate the big things, we celebrate our clients, we celebrate us! If you see one of our language clients spontaneously requesting "water" as they pass the water fountain or pausing from taking a step as they are cued to "wait!" with a shout by a therapist, our faces light up with excitement. When we're blessed with new therapy supplies or funding for necessary equipment around the clinic, happy energy shared between us all yields the ambiance of pay day!

This week, the fun continued as we took a pause out to celebrate our boss, Mrs. Melissa Juneau's 50th birthday! Decorated by our wonderful office administrators, Mrs. Bonita and Mrs. Jenna, streamers, birthday banners, and balloons nicely adorned her door and office and were awaiting her entrance to her surprise. It didn’t stop there! The staff gathered around the intercom to serenade her in singing happy birthday as she cut into her birthday cake!

It’s wonderful to have a great boss! And it’s not quite above suspicious that as she celebrates her 50th year of life, the Foundation shares in its 50th celebration of operation! What can I say? Some things just “fit” so well! Happy Birthday Mrs. Melissa!"  

BRSHF common site of reunions

Not only is BRSHF gearing up for our 50th Anniversary reunion & celebration on September 12. Dr. Natalee Menge, staff audiologist, observed this chance meeting of two hearing impaired clients as a result of her clinic schedule!

"I saw 2 hearing impaired teenagers back-to-back last week, both have been long-time patients at the clinic. I didn't think anything of it, but I knew in the back of my mind that they had attended the same elementary school. When the second child and mother arrived for their appointment, they recognized the mom in the waiting room. They were so excited to see each other again, it had been a few years since they had seen one another. The moms were able to visit and catch up, I was unaware of this since I was in the sound suite with the other child working on their hearing aids. I had a knock on my door and when I opened it, they were all standing there, both moms and 2 children, waiting to see the child I had been working with. She was surprised to say the least. It was great to see two children re-connect after being apart for a few years, especially when  no one anticipated it. Reunions like this occur frequently at BRSHF, whether it be between childhood friends, parents, or grandparents, and each time it happens it makes my day a little brighter."

Lisa says therapists not responsible for future behavior

Lisa Sloan-Limmer, a speech therapist, reported this update:

"Today I had a phone call from a parent that makes all of the challenges in being a pediatric speech pathologist so WORTH IT! The parent called to tell me how pleased they were with their child's progress in my group and how much more their child is speaking. The family has reached a huge milestone: The child has begun to be able to communicate his/her wants and needs and the stress and frustration of trying to 'figure things out' several times a day has greatly decreased! Of course, as I personally experienced from my 17 year old being in speech therapy when he was 2; when my student reaches the wonderous 'preteen' age, they might not feel quite so grateful to me! I feel I must add this disclaimer: I am not responsible for future 'sassiness or backtalk.' Ha ha!"

Jennifer shares one last story

Jennifer Cortes has worked at BRSHF for many years. As an undergraduate worker, she has worn many hats, from group therapy aide to individual ABA therapist working with children on the autism spectrum, to coordinating our front office, scheduling and billing. Unfortunately for us, Jennifer's last day was yesterday, as she is moving to Valdosta, GA to begin a Masters in Social Work in the Fall! Before she left, she shared this note about her experience here:

"I have been privileged to work with many of the children and families we serve at the Baton Rouge Speech and Hearing Foundatio, as both an ABA therapist and administrative assistant, and here is one of my stories:

One little boy whom I have worked with one-on-one for quite some time had been struggling to learn the skill "arms up." I kept trying to come up with ways to get him to learn this skill, such as holding candy above his head to get him to reach for it, or tickling the palms of his hand, which he loves, when he would even slightly lift his arms. One day when his mom came to pick him up, she mentioned that he likes to do twists off of the couch. I had never let him do flips in the room before, but I thought that maybe, just maybe, he would might go for it. Sure enough, it worked! During our ABA session the next day, I stood up, told him "arms up" and he stood up from his chair, took two steps towards me, and with the biggest smile I've ever seen on his face, he lifted his arms as high as he could for me to pick him up! So, what did I do? I picked him up, threw him in the air, tickled him, and let him twist! I think he knew he got it right, and I was so proud of him I had tears in my eyes!"

Sarah's client says thanks

Sarah Brunet is one of our speech therapists who provides group and individual speech therapy at our clinic, and also off-site through the Federal Early Steps program. She had this experience recently:

“I had an Early Steps patient who I’ve worked with since October, and my last session with him was a few days ago. When we started he was only using single words and gesturing a lot – now he asks questions appropriately and uses complete sentences. His mom has been warning him for a few weeks that his time with me was almost over. Well, at the end of the session, unprompted by me or his mom, he looked at me and said, ‘Thank you for playing with me.’ When a student comes up with a spontaneous sentence like that, I really know I’ve had an impact!”

Kristen is motivated by progress daily

Kristen Abbondate is a Ph.D. candidate in psychology who has worked within our autism program (based on the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis, or ABA) for 2 years. At the end of the summer, she will conclude her assignment here at BRSHF, but not before she relates some of her favorite stories and memories with us!

"As the ABA supervisor, I have the opportunity to watch the children grow and overcome new obstacles each week. I live the struggle trying to come up with new and imaginative ways to help the students grow in our program. Although miracles happen everyday, some stories leave a little more of an imprint than others…


I was making my usual rounds viewing the children’s programs, giving advice to the therapist, and offering my help where needed. That day, I happened to walk into an ABA session with a particular student. This student had struggled in our program. He would tantrum for most of the session, did not speak any words, nor touch known items. When I walked in that day, I saw a very different scene. He was making eye contact with the therapist, laughing as they sang songs together, identifying objects in his environment, and requesting for wanted items. I had to hold back the tears in my eyes as I almost could not believe what I was seeing. I believe I almost did a back flip when I praised him for his hard work. I will never forget that day.

That child is still doing well and I continue to see miracles like this everyday. I get asked a lot why I do what I do. When I tell stories like the one above, and I have many, it is very easy to understand why I do what I do."

Slimy snails solidify speech

Trenae Webb, one of BRSHF's speech therapists, submitted this blogpost after an exchange with nature this morning:


" 'Look! I got a slimy, sticky snail! You wanna see? Are you scared?' is what I heard echoing through the halls of the clinic this morning, prepping for my 9 o'clock client. Praying that the cute little ones from Ms. Tanya's mornining language group would not navigate to my office with their new "slick" friend, I cheered them on in their precision in articulation show and tell, mastering their "S" sounds with little to no cues from their therapist. Nothing's off limits when it comes to reaching those speech and language targets at our clinic. Nothing! Not even nature's best creatures. I bet Mr. Snail had no idea he would be the hot topic as he traveled to speech therapy this morning. I noticed he was rather non-verbal. He had no complaints! If you haven't become suspicious of it already, it's a fact...we love what we do!"